New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a virtual meeting with US President Joe Biden on Monday. The two leaders discussed a range of issues including the Russian offensive in Ukraine.
HERE’S WHAT PM MODI SAID
- ‘India and US are the largest and oldest democracies, thus, we are natural partners.’
- ‘The killing of innocent civilians in Bucha was horrific, we condemn it and we have called for an independent probe’
- ‘Today, our interaction is being held at a time when the situation in Ukraine is a matter of concern. We hope that talks between Ukraine and Russia are fruitful’
- “I have spoken with Prez of both Ukraine and Russia over the telephone, several times. I not only appealed to them for peace but also suggested President Putin hold direct talks with Ukrainian President”
Here is what US President Biden said:
- “We take the same concerns about the global challenges we face for COVID-19, advancing health security and tracking the climate crisis and we share a strong and growing major defence partnership”
- “I want to welcome India’s humanitarian support for the people of Ukraine, who are suffering a horrific assault, including a tragic shelling in a train station last week that killed dozens of innocent children and women and civilians attempting to flee the violence”
- “The United States and India are going to continue our close consultation on how to manage the destabilizing effects of this Russian war”
The virtual meeting preceded the fourth India-US 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue which will be led by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Minister of External Affairs (MEA) S Jaishankar on the Indian side and their US counterparts, Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin and Secretary of State Antony Blinken.